Woody Posted June 27, 2008 Posted June 27, 2008 I just purchased three books that appear to be in a series. They are titled Chopper by Mark Brandon Read. I got 1, 2, and what appears to be the third. Does anyone know how many there are in the set? I have no idea if these books are just trash or what. But I had heard this guy was or is an SDA. Has anyone heard of him. The guy is an Aussie from what I understand. Calling all you members from Australia. What do you know about this guy. Quote May we be one so that the world may be won. Christian from the cradle to the grave I believe in Hematology.
Liz Posted June 27, 2008 Posted June 27, 2008 This is what I found on Wikipedia, his parents were SDA, but it doesn't sound like very good ones. Chopper Read Quote For what will a man be profited, if he gains the whole world, and forfeits his soul? Mat. 16:26Please, support the JDRF and help find a cure for Type 1 Diabetes. Please, support the March of Dimes.
Woody Posted June 27, 2008 Author Posted June 27, 2008 Thanks Liz ... This is what I found ... all very interesting. Read was born to an ex-army father and a mother who was a devout Seventh-day Adventist. He was placed in a children's home for the first 67 months of his life, as his mother was either unwilling or unable to care for him. Read grew up in the Melbourne suburbs of Collingwood, Thomastown, Fitzroy and Preston. He suffered from bullying at school, claiming that by the age of 15 he had been on the "losing end of several hundred fights" and his father, usually on his mother's recommendation, beat him often as a child . Read was made a Ward of the State by the age of 14, and was placed in several mental institutions as a teenager, where he was apparently subjected to both Deep-Sleep and Electroshock therapy. SO, It looks like his mother was a "devout" SDA !!! Does that include recommending beatings? Well .... it looks like I only have the first three books. And there are much more ... Chopper: From the Inside (1991), ISBN 0-646-06543-2 Chopper 2: Hits and Memories (1992), ISBN 0-646-10987-1 Chopper 3: How to Shoot Friends & Influence People (1993), ISBN 0-646-15444-3 Chopper 1992838553753875: For the Term of His Unnatural Life (1994), ISBN 0646210149 Chopper 5: Pulp Faction: Revenge of the Rabbit Kisser and Other Jailhouse Stories (1995), ISBN 0-646-25065-5 Chopper 6: No Tears for a Tough Guy (1996), ISBN 0-646-29637-X Chopper 7: The Singing Defective (1997), ISBN 0-646-33923-0 HI(1998), ISBN 0-9586071-0-9 Chopper 9: The Final Cut (1999), ISBN 0-9586071-4-1 Chopper 101⁄2: The Popcorn Gangster (2001), ISBN 0-9579121-0-2 Hooky the Cripple: The Grim Tale of a Hunchback Who Triumphs (2002), ISBN 1-86403-165-4 The Adventures of Rumsley Rumsfelt (2003), ISBN 0-9579121-7-X (ref: [1]) May 02nd 2008 - Eric Bana has agreed to again play the part of Mark Brandon 'Chopper' Read again in the sequel to 'Chopper', the real Chopper Read has also refused to deny reports that he will have a cameo in the film.[ The Chopper 3: How to Shoot Friends & Influence People (1993), Should be a good read. When I finish it I will experiment and let you know how much I've learned about influencing people. Maybe I can be a greater influence on The Adventist Forum ... better known as CA .... !!! Quote May we be one so that the world may be won. Christian from the cradle to the grave I believe in Hematology.
Moderators Nan Posted June 27, 2008 Moderators Posted June 27, 2008 My brother went to school with this guy, at Lilydale Adventist Academy in Melbourne, Victoria in the late 60's. I do not have any great knowledge of him beyond that - if anyone is interested I can follow it up, although as far as I know said brother has not had any recent contact with Chopper. Quote
Woody Posted June 27, 2008 Author Posted June 27, 2008 Thanks Nan .... I would be very curious for any info you can get. Quote May we be one so that the world may be won. Christian from the cradle to the grave I believe in Hematology.
Moderators Bravus Posted June 28, 2008 Moderators Posted June 28, 2008 Basically he was an abused child - being SDA doesn't *cause* abuse, but doesn't prevent it either - who grew up to be a seriously violent criminal. His speciality was kidnapping other criminals and scaring or torturing them into giving him large amounts of money. He spent a considerable amount of time in jail, and at one point went Van Gogh one better by slicing off *both* his ears. Since getting out of jail he has become a successful author with 'fictionalised' accounts of his exploits. A very, very interesting person... but not someone I would particularly want to know where I lived. Nan's brother might like to keep that in mind. Quote Truth is important
Moderators Bravus Posted June 28, 2008 Moderators Posted June 28, 2008 PS I was a teacher at Lilydale for a couple of years in the late 80s - funny, Chopper was not an alumnus they made a big deal about! Quote Truth is important
Moderators Nan Posted June 28, 2008 Moderators Posted June 28, 2008 Thanks Bravus.....anything I post - if my brother actually knows anything more than what is in the common domain, which I doubt - would be very general and non threatening. As far as I know Bro has not kept in touch with the guy. I was really just confirming the SDA connection. Quote
Woody Posted June 28, 2008 Author Posted June 28, 2008 Does he contribute to the Alumni Association with his vast earnings from all of his books etc.? Somehow ... I guess I doubt it. Seriously ... I am curious how he feels about Adventists now. Or are the Adventists too afraid to ask? Quote May we be one so that the world may be won. Christian from the cradle to the grave I believe in Hematology.
Woody Posted June 28, 2008 Author Posted June 28, 2008 Quote: he has become a successful author with 'fictionalised' accounts of his exploits. The books I bought were called an autobiography. Are you saying he 'fictionalized' his autobiographies? Quote May we be one so that the world may be won. Christian from the cradle to the grave I believe in Hematology.
Moderators Nan Posted June 28, 2008 Moderators Posted June 28, 2008 Actually when I think about it, I am not sure if he was at the school or if that was the time in Bro's life when he knew him. Quote
Moderators Bravus Posted June 28, 2008 Moderators Posted June 28, 2008 Quote: Are you saying he 'fictionalized' his autobiographies? He's a good old Aussie yarn-spinner, and he's said in the past 'Never let the truth get in the way of a good story'. I'm sure there's a kernel of truth there, but just as sure he embroiders. Not necessarily to show himself in a better light, just to make a better yarn. Quote Truth is important
Moderators LynnDel Posted June 28, 2008 Moderators Posted June 28, 2008 Any autobiography contains memories enhanced by the passage of time, omits memories repressed, includes event details that may be argued by others in the story who experienced events from a different angle, transitions that may involve literary license, and if dialogue is included, words or rephrasings recounted that may or may not resemble actual conversations. But that's to be expected and still falls into the realm of autobiography without the accusation of being overly fictionalized. Are the Chopper Read stories more fictionalized than what could be called pure autobiography? Most likely! But are his readers looking for truth, or are they looking for a good story? He's been honest about his goal by saying, 'Never let the truth get in the way of a good story.' Quote LD
Woody Posted June 28, 2008 Author Posted June 28, 2008 Well now I am disillusioned. I thought I was buying an autobiography that told the truth of his life like the Pacific Press stories of missionaries that I was raised on. I was expecting it all to work out in the end with his reconversion to Adventism. A happy ending. But from what I am hearing ... this may not be the case. Quote May we be one so that the world may be won. Christian from the cradle to the grave I believe in Hematology.
Moderators LynnDel Posted June 28, 2008 Moderators Posted June 28, 2008 I hate to further disillusion you, Redwood, but many of the missionary stories we grew up reading were also highly fictionalized. The germ of truth was always in there somewhere, but often the personalities of any who caused problems for the missionaries were wrapped up into one entity for the story: the evil witch doctor. Quote LD
Woody Posted July 8, 2008 Author Posted July 8, 2008 My brother went to school with this guy, at Lilydale Adventist Academy in Melbourne, Victoria in the late 60's. I do not have any great knowledge of him beyond that - if anyone is interested I can follow it up, although as far as I know said brother has not had any recent contact with Chopper. Just got the books in the mail yesterday. By glancing through them briefly ... I could see that he names names of those he went to the Adventist schools with. One that caught my eye was "Polish Suzie". He describes her as very conservative while he was in that school. But when he saw her after graduation ... she was running a brothel. He seems to like to brag about those who turned 'bad' from the SDA schools. These books are not easy reading. They are a little too 'worldly' or 'sadistic' for me. Not something I will display in my library. Just for reference purposes ... "Polish Suzie" is mentioned in "Chopper 3 How to shoot friends and influence people". If I come across any mention of your brother Nan ... I'll let you know. Quote May we be one so that the world may be won. Christian from the cradle to the grave I believe in Hematology.
Moderators Nan Posted July 8, 2008 Moderators Posted July 8, 2008 I spoke to my brother about this a few days ago, it seems my memory was faulty. Bro did not go to school with Mr Reed but knew him a little in Melbourne in his later teen years, in the group of young people who had associations with the church. My family lived a way out of Melbourne, though close enough to visit easily. Given all you have said, I would hope he is not named LOL Quote
Moderators Nan Posted July 8, 2008 Moderators Posted July 8, 2008 I hate to further disillusion you, Redwood, but many of the missionary stories we grew up reading were also highly fictionalized. The germ of truth was always in there somewhere, but often the personalities of any who caused problems for the missionaries were wrapped up into one entity for the story: the evil witch doctor. I came to realise after my stint in the "mission field" that many of the stories are not suitable for Pacific Press or any other SDA printers! Quote
Woody Posted July 8, 2008 Author Posted July 8, 2008 Quote: the evil witch doctor Oh. But he was such a good villian. Quote May we be one so that the world may be won. Christian from the cradle to the grave I believe in Hematology.
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